Mortgage Offer expired between exchange and completion

lam4286

Hi all


My partner and I are due to complete on a new build, 'Help to Buy' property. A quick timeline:

• We were given a completion window of September / October (that the developers have kept to)
• We received mortgage offers in March, April and June (my partner is on a zero-hours NHS contract and is starting a small business, hence multiple offers).
• Our deposit was paid in May. We exchanged contracts at the end of June (after the receipt of the last mortgage offer.
• We were given our completion notice on 13th October (i.e. completing on 27th October). However, our mortgage offer (yes, the June offer) had expired on 13th September (6 months after the original March offer)
• Now we're having to get a new mortgage offer (with a new valuation, luckily signed off at the same value) and will likely have to extend completion.

Obviously my partner and I should have been more aware of when the mortgage offer expired - our fault completely. However, I feel there are a couple of reasons for us to feel a bit done over:

• To conveyancer allowed us to exchange even though it was unlikely the mortgage offer would still be valid.
• The broker nor the conveyancer noticed the mortgage offer had expired when we received our completion notice.
• The conveyancer has claimed the broker told them the mortgage offer was valid until "December" (which kind of makes sense; being 6 months after our final June offer, but still an oversight).

I'm just wondering if we have any recourse here? I'm sure that when our new offer eventually comes through we will have been charged for getting another valuation and we'll be charged interest for having to extend completion. Has anyone had any luck with passing these charges on or disputing them?


Probably on a hiding to nothing here admittedly...


Cheers

Thrugelmir

lam4286 wrote: »

We received mortgage offers in March, April and June (my partner is on a zero-hours NHS contract and is starting a small business, hence multiple offers).

Did you receive mortgage offers or just AIP's?

To clarify when did you make the full mortgage application?

lam4286

Full mortgage application was made back in March. And yes they were mortgage offers, not AIPs.

lam4286

Hi all, any help or advice here would be appreciated! Thanks

csgohan4

better hurry and apply again asap and get a broker

davidmcn

lam4286 wrote: »

Obviously my partner and I should have been more aware of when the mortgage offer expired - our fault completely.

I think you've answered your own question here.

Although it would be nice if everybody else diarised stuff for you too (and in many cases they will) I don't think they've got any legal duty to do so.

haras_nosirrah

even if the broker had realised that the mortgage offer was only valid till sept you would have had to have paid another valuation as the property wasn't ready in time.